Rockets soar to 12th straight win
Notch 12th straight win for NBA-best 46-13 record
DENVER— James Harden had 41 points and eight rebounds while Chris Paul scored 23 as the Houston Rockets beat the Denver Nuggets, 119114, on Sunday for their 12th straight win at Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado. The Rockets are 21-4 since last Dec. 29 and own the best NBA record (46-13). Harden, who had 27 in the first half, has scored 40 or more points nine times this season.
DENVER— James Harden had 41 points and eight rebounds, Chris Paul scored 23 points and the Houston Rockets beat the Denver Nuggets, 119-114, on Sunday night for their 12th straight victory.
Harden had 27 in the first half and seven in the fourth quarter, when the Rockets held off a late Denver rally.
Harden has scored 40 or more points nine times this season. He finished with seven assists.
Nikola Jokic had 21 points and 14 rebounds for Denver, which had its four-game winning streak snapped.
The Rockets are 21-4 since Dec. 29 and own the best record (46-13) in the NBA. They are outscoring teams by an average of 12.5 points during the 12-game winning streak. The five-point win Sunday was their closest game during the streak.
Harden scored 14 points in the last 2:47 of the first quarter and assisted on Houston’s other two baskets to end the period when the Rockets extended the lead from five to 13.
Houston led by as many as 18 but Denver rallied in the fourth. Jokic’s tip with 2:12 left made it 110-106 and after Joe Johnson missed from the corner, Gary Harris had a chance to cut it to a point with a 3-pointer.
But the Nuggets’ leading scorer, who finished with six points on 2-of-12 shooting, misfired and Harden hit two more free throws to make it 112-106 with 1:17 left. His step-back jumper with 46 seconds left clinched it for Houston.
Spurs 110, Cavaliers 94
LaMarcus Aldridge scored 27 points and Danny Green added 22 as San Antonio did everything right in the final 12 minutes while rolling to a win at Cleveland.
San Antonio opened the fourth quarter with an 11-0 run that produced an 87-74 advantage with 9:22 to play.
Cleveland never got within eight points the rest of the way in an anticlimactic finish to what was a close game for three quarters. The Spurs snapped a fourgame losing streak and finished their road trip 2-4.
LeBron James led all scorers with 33 points and collected 13 rebounds for the Cavaliers, who have lost two of their past three games after winning four straight.
Pelicans 123, Bucks 121 (OT)
Jrue Holiday scored 15 points in the third quarter and finished with 36 as visiting New Orleans held off Milwaukee in overtime.
The Pelicans won their fifth consecutive game, their longest winning streak in three years. They won their sixth straight overtime game and second in three days. OTHER RESULTS: Wizards 109, 76ers 94; Hornets 114, Pistons 98